Experiments conducted in vitro and in vivo demonstrated that circMAP2K2 regulates the PCBP1/GPX1 axis through proteasome‐mediated degradation, resulting in activation of the AKT/GSK3β signaling pathway and epithelial‐to‐mesenchymal transition (EMT)‐like phenotype, thereby enhancing the proliferation, migration, and invasion of gastric cancer cells. This evidence concerns the gene AKT1 and gastric cancer.